This was the wine that started it all for me; what got me interested in wine: Colores del Sol Malbec reserva. I don’t remember the exact vintage (2014 or so), but I remember looking at the label and seeing that it was $10 off at my local supermarket. So I took the plunge. Hundreds of bottles of wine later and I bought the 2018 vintage reserva and this Malbec was everything I remembered it was and more. A simple, accessible dry-ish red wine for everyone is how I would describe it. I’ve recommended it to many friends as it provides a decent amount of tannins to make the mouth a bit dry without it being completely off-limits to the sweet wine lovers, too. Colores del Sol, the winemaker, is owned by Bronco Wine Company (aka “Big Wine”). Bronco Wine Company also owns the likes of Black Opal, Crane Lake Cellars, among others in their portfolio. (For the record, Black Opal has a good Shiraz I’ve bought a few times and Crane Lake is a decent wine for the $5 you’ll spend.) In 2009, Market Watch named Colores del Sol as the “most successful new wine launched in 2009.” This Malbec is from the Mendoza region of Argentina. This region is where the vast majority of Malbec wines at your local liquor store, supermarket, or specialty wine store are from. In fact, per Wine Folly, Argentina grows the vast majority of Malbec worldwide. The important distinction with this Malbec though, isn’t where it was grown, but rather the “reserva” title it’s given. The “reserva” label is given to those Malbec wines that use higher-quality grapes that are from older vines or at higher elevations. There is (allegedly) a difference in taste between “reserva” and non-reserva Malbec wines: the latter is said to have deeper dark fruit, chocolate, and mocha flavors than the more herbal red fruit tasting non-reserva. The Luján de Cuyo region of the Mendoza Province is where the high-altitude growing originated in the mid-1990s. Body: Medium-bodied; medium purple with lighter red on the edges of the glass.
Smell: Faint oak & tobacco with dark fruit and spices. Taste: Dark fruit (blackberry, plum jam) forward with a medium finish of oak and tobacco; medium tannins. Specs: ABV: 13.0% Varietal: Malbec Region: Luján de Cuyo district, Mendoza Province, Argentina, South America Bottle size: 750ml Pairings: Red meat Vivino rating: 4.5/5.0
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Author20 something living in Beer City USA with an affinity for wine. Other hobbies include photography, reading, and playing my pup. Archives
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